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John James Audubon
Arctic Fox /// Natural History Animal John James Audubon Watercolor Lithograph

1845-1848

About the Item

Artist: John James Audubon (American, 1785-1851) Title: "Arctic Fox" (Plate 121, No. 25) Portfolio: The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America, Imperial Bowen Edition Year: 1845-1848 Medium: Original Hand-Colored Lithograph on Elephant Folio wove paper Limited edition: 300 Printer: John T. Bowen, Philadelphia, PA Publisher: John James Audubon and Rev. John Bachman, Philadelphia, PA Framing: Recently framed in a wood moulding and rag matting from Holland Framed size: 29.63" x 35.25" Sheet size: 22" x 28" Image size: 17" x 24.75" Condition: The sheet is laid down to board. A few foxmarks. Some surface abrasions, mainly to brown fox in upper left area, which have since been skillfully restored. It is otherwise in good condition with clean paper and strong colors Rare Notes: Provenance: private collection - a doctor and ornithologist, Augusta, ME. Lithography and hand-coloring by American artist John T. Bowen (1801-c.1856). Comes from Audubon's famous book "The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America", Imperial Bowen Edition (1845-1848), which consists of 150 hand-colored prints, made from lithographed plates. The Arctic fox, also known as the white fox, polar fox, or snow fox, is a small fox native to the Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere and common throughout the Arctic tundra biome. It is well adapted to living in cold environments, and is best known for its thick, warm fur that is also used as camouflage. John James Audubon’s last major accomplishment was the creation of "The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America" (Imperial Bowen Edition) which was produced in collaboration with his friend, the Reverend John Bachman (1790-1874), a Lutheran minister and naturalist from Charleston, SC, who wrote the accompanying text. In the summer of 1843, John James Audubon embarked with his son, John Woodhouse, on a final drawing expedition up the Missouri River to document and depict the four-legged mammals of North America. Produced from 1845 to 1848 by the distinguished Philadelphia printmaker, John T. Bowen, the set of 150 black-and-white lithographs was completely hand-colored. This Imperial Bowen edition was published in three volumes of 50 prints each in 1845, 1846 and 1848, in an total edition size of approx. 300. These prints were published in imperial folio size, also defined as the elephant size, measuring 22 by 28 inches. Many of the mammals were drawn by John Woodhouse Audubon with backgrounds contributed by Victor Gifford Audubon. Biography: John James Audubon (April 26, 1785, Les Cayes, Saint-Domingue (later Haiti) – January 27, 1851 (aged 65) Manhattan, New York, U.S.), born Jean-Jacques Audubon, was an American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter. He was notable for his expansive studies to document all types of American birds and for his detailed illustrations that depicted the birds in their natural habitats. His major work, a color-plate book entitled The Birds of America (1827–1839), is considered one of the finest ornithological works ever completed. Audubon identified 25 new species.
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  • White-headed Sea Eagle, or Bald Eagle (with Catfish) /// Bird John James Audubon
    By John James Audubon
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  • Long-billed Curlew (City of Charleston) /// Ornithology John James Audubon Bird
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    Artist: John James Audubon (American, 1785-1851) Title: "Long-billed Curlew (City of Charleston)" (Plate 355, No. 71) Portfolio: The Birds of America, First Royal Octavo Edition...
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  • Greenshank (St. Augustine, FL) /// Bird Ornithology John James Audubon Seascape
    By John James Audubon
    Located in Saint Augustine, FL
    Artist: John James Audubon (American, 1785-1851) Title: "Greenshank (St. Augustine, FL)" (Plate 346, No. 70) Portfolio: The Birds of America, First Royal Octavo Edition Year: 1840-1844 Medium: Original Hand-Colored Lithograph on wove paper Limited edition: approx. 1,200 Printer: John T. Bowen, Philadelphia, PA Publisher: John James Audubon and J.B. Chevalier, New York, NY and Philadelphia, PA Sheet size: 6.5" x 10.25" Image size: 4.38" x 7.75" Condition: Minor toning at edges. In excellent condition with strong colors Rare Notes: Lithography and hand-coloring by American artist John T. Bowen (1801-c.1856). Comes from Audubon's famous seven volume portfolio "The Birds of America", First Royal Octavo Edition (1840-1844), which consists of 500 hand-colored lithographs. Comes with its original accompanying text pages. The composition was probably painted in England in 1835, using a preserved specimen. Since no other than Audubon has ever claimed to have seen this European species in America, it is considered possible that he confused it with the greater yellow-legs. The common greenshank is a wader in the large family Scolopacidae, the typical waders. The genus name Tringa is the New Latin name given to the green sandpiper by Aldrovandus in 1599 based on Ancient Greek trungas, a thrush-sized, white-rumped, tail-bobbing wading...
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